The little things 😅 One of the favorite arguments against activism on a personal level was always "what difference does it make? I'm alone!" Especially when I went vegetarian and then vegan, I was belittled, told that it wouldn't make an impact. "The cows are going to be killed, anyway!" That's been 12 years now, and I do believe that the little shift of my spending in a capitalist world made a difference. And, also, suddenly I'm not alone anymore. 12 years ago, there was almost no vegan convenience food available. Now, even here in Ecuador, I can get Beyond Meat burgers and sausages and all that. Over time, little things turn big.
When I had more time, I used the empty flour bags to recollect garbage on the way between the house I was living in and the local elementary school. I always filled the 50kg bag easily, once a week, sometimes twice. People didn't throw away less litter - but the kids saw me. Some came over and helped me. Some brought the litter that they were probably going to throw on the ground and put them in my bag, and I thanked them. That probably had more of an impact than every hypocritical lecture on not-to-litter by a teacher who throws away his cigarette buds, just like everyone else. Actions can teach so much more than words at that age.
I was raised vegetarian in Australia, and at that time, it was very, very rare to have anything available. My mum was called into the school to talk to the principal about my older brothers, because they believed not feeding meat was child abuse :D
I have noticed a stark increase in children and young adults littering now. It wasn't an issue when I was a kid, nor was it an issue when I first came to Finland. All that talk of "environmental awareness in the young" seems to be BS from what I have commonly observed.
It's similar here. People don't understand it, and as they have no idea about nutrition anyway, nor do they see that many of their sickness comes from over-consumption of animal products, they judge. And "joke". The protein question... the island... Oh, and the macho infused "so you don't do oral sex, because, you know, it's meat, hahahaha so funny!"
Maybe it skipped a generation? Too much focus on it, turning the now-parents away when they were kids? I don't even understand why people litter. Everything has pockets these days. And most litter is so small. But that's me. I'm weird. Positively weird, I hope.
:D
I think the litter thing here is that there isn't focus on it. Parents don't litter, their kids do. There are bins everywhere here also.